When you think of teams with multiple All-Stars, you think of dominance – the Jazz, the Lakers, the Nets. The Celtics have two All-Stars in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, but after Wednesday night’s result against the Hawks, Boston is in last place in the Atlantic division.
However, team president Danny Ainge is not ready to throw his star tandem under the bus.
“I wish I had answers for you. I have not,” Ainge said on 98.5 The Sports Hub on Thursday. “I do believe in my players. I like everyone individually. I think they have a good future. I just think our team is in a big funk now.”
Funk may not be a strong enough word to describe Wednesday’s game. With a heartbreaking loss to the Mavericks, the Celtics were 13 to a quarter and 23 to half. They allowed the most three points in team history.
Brown had 17 points for the Celtics and missed all six of his three-point attempts. Tatum was held on 4-of-20 shooting to 13 points and was only 1-out-8 from long range.
The Celtics have now lost three in a row to fall two games below .500. They dropped eight of the 11 games overall and watched the playoffs.
“Here’s what’s the biggest thing about Jaylen and Jayson,” Ainge said. ‘They have been shielded before because they had other very good players, veterans around them as they developed – and went to three out of four Eastern conferences. [finals].
“Now it’s on them. Now they’re the stars. And they have the big contracts. And they have the All-Star nods. So the microscope is on them.”
Kemba Walker is one of those veteran All-Stars. With a career year in Charlotte, Boston signed a four-year, $ 141 million four-year deal before last season. He put up solid numbers and brought heat and Brown and Tatum.
This year, a knee injury limited him to 16 games. His average point is his worst in five years and he shoots just 37.5% off the floor. The Celtics kept him out of Wednesday’s game to avoid a rugby game, and Boston got in the way.
Like last week, Ainge says the problems with the Celtics depend more on him than his young stars or coach Brad Stevens.
“It’s a problem,” Ainge said. “I say I love my two young guys, they are not perfect, and they learn, and this adversity is part of their growth and development – not intentionally, it’s just the nature of the beast.”
But Ainge said he was not trying to make excuses.
“We play terribly,” he said. “In my opinion, we do not have a good enough team.”
He added that he does not want to change for the sake of change, “but I want to do something that will make a difference in our team.”
The Celtics’ first chance to get back on track comes at home on Friday against a struggling Pacers team. Then there are the emerging Wizards in town ahead of the games against the Clippers, Raptors and Nets.
Bradley Beal, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, James Harden, Kyrie Irving – the Celtics will face a lot of All-Stars and will quickly find out if their duo is doing well.
“I think they both hold themselves accountable,” Ainge said of Brown and Tatum. ‘You’re talking about two hard-working children trying to get better. And it’s a very frustrating time for them. ‘